Publications

Survey of Energy Resources 2007

Coal Country Notes

Serbia has Europe's largest proven deposits of lignite. The Serbian WEC Member Committee reports that the proved amount of coal in place is over 21 billion tonnes, of which by far the greater part (97%) is lignite. Within the other ranks, 6 million out of the 27 million tonnes of bituminous coal in place (22%) is deemed to be recoverable, while the corresponding figures for sub-bituminous are 379 million out of 571 million (66%). The recovery factor attributed to the lignite reserves is also approximately 66%.

The pattern of Serbia's coal reserves is replicated in current production levels: lignite (all of which surface-mined) accounted for more than 98% of total output in 2005. Most of the lignite is used for electricity generation, with minor quantities being briquetted or directly consumed in the industrial and residential sectors.